This week’s update provides additional details on plans for the end of this school year, graduation schedules, and initial planning for the fall. As the COVID-19 pandemic remains a fluid situation, Gwinnett County Public Schools will continue to communicate information to families through the last day of digital learning on May 20.
End-of-year activities: Students returning books, computers, etc., and picking up belongings and yearbooks
At this time, schools are developing plans for allowing students to return to the school building to gather personal items and return school-owned items. This will take place during the weeks of May 18 and May 25. These plans will take into consideration physical distancing and will limit the number of people in the building at one time. Each school will communicate its process directly to parents.
Plans for next school year
As GCPS makes plans for the end of this very unusual school year, district leaders are looking ahead to the fall. Ongoing concerns about COVID-19 and speculation about its impact on reopening schools could affect the start of the 2020–21 school year. No decisions have been made on when school will begin in the fall, but possible options include:
Follow the existing calendar for the 2020–21 school year, which is very similar to this year’s calendar. (This calendar is published on the GCPS website.) School would begin on Wednesday, Aug. 5, and end on Wednesday, May 26.
Begin the year on Aug. 5 with digital learning, providing small-group, in-school opportunities for new students and kindergartners to introduce our digital learning platform and provide in-class support for students in grades 1–3.
Follow an alternate calendar for 2020–21 that calls for school to start after Labor Day and end in mid-June. This calendar would include a weeklong Thanksgiving Break, a 10-day Winter Break, and a weeklong Spring Break.
Summer School
GCPS will not offer face-to-face summer school options during June. High school students may take online summer classes through Gwinnett Online Campus, community school programs, and credit recovery courses.
If it appears GCPS will be able to begin the year as planned on Wednesday, Aug. 5, an in-person summer session for identified elementary and middle school students will be held July 6–21.
If the COVID-19 situation delays the start of school until September, an in-person summer session for elementary and middle school students will occur Aug. 3–21. An in-person high school session would occur Aug. 3–25. These plans are dependent on the fluid COVID situation.
Transcripts
When high school report cards are issued in late May, students and their families will notice a change. Grades for each course will be presented in both an unweighted and weighted format. In addition, grade point averages (GPAs) will be reported in an unweighted 4-point scale and in a new weighted 5-point scale.
In Gwinnett, students who take Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and higher-level math and science courses have 10 points added to their grades, “weighting” their final class grade to account for the more rigorous content and course. For example, a student who earns a 94 in AP Human Geography receives a 104 on the report card once the 10 points are added. In the past, this weighted grade (including the 10 points) was included in calculating a student’s class rank but not GPA. In an unweighted GPA, that grade accounts for 4 quality points toward the student’s GPA. With the inclusion of a weighted GPA, that grade of 104 will now be factored in as 5 quality points.
GCPS will continue using the weighted grades to determine rank in class and valedictorian and salutatorian honors.
Graduation
Online, find the schedule for each high school’s virtual graduation to be held in May, as well as tentative dates and times for in-person graduations, which will be held July 13–19 if conditions allow.
During Digital Learning Days, if you have an immediate concern regarding your child, please contact your local school.
GCPS will continue to provide updates on these and other topics. Check your school or district website for additional information.